Review: "Total Recall" is 2012 remake and 'virtually' unnecessary

"Total Recall" (2012) PG 13
Len Wiseman of the Underworld saga tackles the Philip K. Dick story, 'We can Remember it for you Wholesale', claiming his is truer to the short story than the original done 22 years ago. Well it isn't, as it doesn't have Mars in it, and it is in that Quaid is now less burly and more like just a working stiff, as in the story. Comparisons to the original will persist for a long time, but both are unique in that they tackle a dystopia and virtual reality differently, as now we are so used to these kinds of stories. Since then, cyberpunk has become a term in the lexicon, movies like 'Inception' and 'The Matrix' are well known extensions of the ideas Dick and William Gibson and the greats thought of long ago.
     Colin Farrell is an action hero of this generation, and his lackey turned super spy character has been seen before. The idea has become so commonplace that one might think, of 'Jason Borne' (Damon) before they think 'James Bond' (Craig) who proceeded the concept in their films. The movie has the same basic premise as the 1990 version, it is a future where humanity is dystopian in a post nuclear war, meaning life stinks, and there are two places on Earth left, and to get to and from them they must enter a gravity elevator called the Fall. The oddball premise of something going through the mantle of a planet, where it is molten, is impossible. Now that would be interesting. It does beg another question, if this society is so advanced as to build an indestructible tunnel through the planet, they could easily have restored the toxic atmosphere too. Right?
     An evil dictator in the guise of the leader of the Commonwealth (post war Europe circa 2084) wants to wipe out the Colony (Australia). Think 28 Days Later meets Blade Runner (also based on Philip Dick story) and 'Inception' and 'Borne Identity'. Is it a better story than the original? No because there is nothing original about the story, although this may be a conceit as now we're so used to this in movies. Big dumb action space fantasy has become cliche. Quaid's character is a robot builder, similar to the guy in 'I Robot', another dumb action flick, and he longs to do something more, so he goes to ReKall and is about to be jacked into the virtual memory game, only to discover he already is a super spy and nothing it what it seems. The action moves fast, so that the thin plot can be hidden, (much like in Underworld) and despite the cast saying it's not a remake, it is. It also is kind of a sequel. The evil leader wants to destroy the colony but the alleged evil colonist leader wants to destroy the Fall, the neat but impossible gravity elevator. The actioner 'The Core' comes to mind, as well as the trans-Atlantic subway movie 'Daylight'? from some years ago. But given it could be a dream too. Maybe all of the movie is just in Arnie's head? It doesn't have thje snarky appeal of the first, or the memorable lines, so it's not going to be a cult classic.